S.D. Florida cuts intellectual property fee award 37.8%, including for clerical work

What happened

SRIPLAW, counsel for the fee applicant, requested $7,882.50 in fees for 25.9 hours in this intellectual property case. The court awarded $4,903, a reduction of $2,979.50 or 37.8%. Judge Roy K. Altman reduced Ms. Lara's hourly rate for fourteen hours and Ms. Pollack's rate for 10.7 hours. The court awarded no fees for Mr. Unfer's work, which it treated as clerical, and reduced Ms. Pollack's time on three vague entries by 40%.

What the court said

So, we won't award any fees for Mr. Unfer's work.

We too will reduce Ms. Pollack's time on these three problematic entries by 40% (leaving her with 10.28 total hours billed, instead of 10.7).

The court also reduced the award for: hourly rate reduced, hourly rate reduced.

Why it matters

The ruling shows that a fee award can be reduced for reasons beyond the number of hours claimed. Courts will adjust hourly rates, exclude time spent on clerical tasks, and cut entries that lack sufficient detail, even when the overall request is modest.

How to keep this out of your fee petition

• Leave purely clerical work off the fee petition.
• Describe paralegal tasks so the substantive work is clear.
• Split mixed entries into their substantive and clerical parts.

Cite this ruling

See hourly rates the S.D. Florida approves and attorney fee motions in Florida federal courts.

Figures and quotes are taken from the opinion and checked against its text. Spot an error? Email team@legaltime.ai with the case name and we will correct it. Summaries of public court opinions. Not legal advice.